Denver Insider Says 'It Is Time For Jared Bednar To Go' After Avalanche Swept From Playoffs

Colorado Avalanche head coach Jared Bednar

The fallout from the Colorado Avalanche's disastrous four-game ouster at the hands of the Vegas Golden Knights is only just beginning in Denver.

What went wrong for the Presidents' Trophy-winning Avalanche that led to getting swept in the Western Conference Final by Vegas? Injuries? Goaltending? Poor performances on the ice from key players? Maybe any of the above.

But according to longtime Denver sports insider Tony Renck in the Denver Post, it is head coach Jared Bednar who must bear the brunt of this, and he says, "It is time for Bednar to go."

Everyone thinks Jared Bednar is a great guy. But he is no longer a good fit for the Avalanche.
He is the best coach in franchise history. Yet, running it back would be the worst thing the organization could do.
This Avs’ exit needs to come with a major announcement, that president Joe Sakic and general manager Chris MacFarland have decided to dismiss Bednar with one year remaining on his contract.
There is no good reason for what just happened over the past six days. Only excuses.

Renck adds that, certainly, the players are not blameless. Not in the least. And he even admits, "It is much easier to switch out the person standing behind the bench than those sitting on it."

But at the same time, he lists some of the coaching issues that faced the Avs in this four-game drubbing.

Why Jared Bednar could take the fall in Colorado

"Bednar could have changed line combinations sooner. Could have tweaked the power play lineup. Could have challenged bad calls with ferocious intensity. Could have pulled Scott Wedgewood in favor of Blackwood after the second goal on Sunday.

"In reality, there is no single reason why Bednar should go. It is the aggregate."

Bednar led Colorado to the Stanley Cup championship in 2022. But they have failed to get out of the Western Conference now for four straight years. And this season, they dominated the league from Game 1 through Game 82 (and the first two rounds of the playoffs), looking like an unstoppable force.

But it still ended the way it has the previous three years.

"Whatever the case, ownership has given Sakic and MacFarland freedom to try everything the past two seasons with roster upgrades. After this playoff meltdown, they now have a responsibility they can no longer shirk," Renck concluded.

"As hard as it might be, it is time for Bednar to go because sticking with him, as the series with Las Vegas showed, is a losing bet."

We'll find out what the odds are of that happening, in the days ahead.

And if dice come up snake eyes, and Bednar must go, there is already a primed and poised candidate in Denver that could be ready to take his place.